New Mexico (DVD)

The assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the breaking of treaties he had signed with the Indian tribes in the West, have turned the frontier into a cruel and deadly place. After a sadistic U.S. Cavalry colonel orders the brutal murders of several of his tribesmen, Chief Acoma stages a reprisal raid to slaughter the man responsible. Command of the remote army outpost falls to Captain Hunt, once a trusted friend and ally of Acoma's. Hunt leads a small platoon of soldiers into the desert to track down the rebel chieftain before total war breaks out and floods the New Mexico territory with blood.

A committed pacifist in real life, Lew Ayres first gained fame in the anti-war masterpiece, All Quiet on the Western Front (1930). His performances in the Dr. Kildare film series in the late 1930s made him a mainstream star, but the American public turned on him for declaring conscientious objector status during World War II. This may account for the scant attention paid in 1951 to this riveting western tale of honor and betrayal. His co-star, the curvaceous platinum blonde Marilyn Maxwell, was a frequent partner with Bob Hope on his wartime USO tours.

• western